Following the death of his wife, Amelia (Leila) Isobel Eccles McClintock in January 1937, Captain Wilfred Heyman Joynson–Wreford remained at Seskinore, profoundly affected by her loss.
Each evening at six o’clock, he would walk her dog to the “Mistress’ Garden,” the small enclosure where she had been laid to rest. There, beside her grave, he would sit quietly—often for an hour or more.
Those who worked on the estate later recalled that he never recovered from her death, observing that he appeared to have “not long for this world.”
Declining Health
In the months that followed, Tony’s health began to deteriorate.
Over the next three years, he spent extended periods in various clinics. Letters written between 1938 and 1940 to Andy McHugh, the gardener at Seskinore, provide intimate insight into this period. They reveal not only his worsening condition, but also his continuing concern for the estate and his deep affection for his young daughter, Xenia.
While convalescing at a nursing home in Barnstaple in late 1938, he learned that the Chapel of Ease at Seskinore had been damaged on Christmas Eve. His sister, Christabel Gladwell, wrote to Andy McHugh conveying the family’s concern on receiving the news.
Illness and Treatment
By early 1939, Tony had been diagnosed with tuberculosis.
In March of that year, he was transferred by air ambulance from Barnstaple Airport to Zurich, and from there to the Kurhaus in Clavadel, near Davos—a well-known sanatorium for tuberculosis patients.
He was accompanied by his daughter Xenia, his nurse, and Xenia’s nurse, Helen Hunter, affectionately known as “Nursie.”
A contemporary newspaper report titled “Plane as Ambulance” (Devon & Exeter Gazette, 24 March 1939) recorded this unusual journey, reflecting both the seriousness of his condition and the measures taken to secure treatment.
Death in Switzerland
Tony Joynson–Wreford died on 23 March 1940 at the Kurhaus in Clavadel.
DEATH OF CAPTAIN JOYNSON WREFORD, SESKINORE.
Intimation has been received in Omagh of the death, which took place in Switzerland. Captain Joynson Wreford, of Seskinore. County Tyrone. Captain Wreford was a son-in-law of the late Colonel .J. K. McClintock. C.B.E., D.L., Seskinore. The late Captain Wreford married the only daughter and heir of Colonel McClintock. His wife died some time ago. His health has been impaired owing to injuries in the Great War. He is survived by a daughter of tender years.
A postcard from that year depicts the sanatorium as a large, imposing structure set against the Alpine landscape—remote and serene, yet associated with the long and often uncertain struggle of its patients.
His Final Wishes
Shortly before his death he sold part of the Mullaghmore estate (below) containing 227 acres, 3 roods and 15 perches to the Ministry of agriculture.
In his will, Tony left a deeply personal instruction:
“IT IS MY WISH that should my Trustees sell or let Seskinore House they should reserve to all members of my family or of the family of McClintock of which my darling Wife was a member the right in perpetuity to enter the said grounds for the purpose of visiting the grave of my said Wife and to keep-up the Garden of Remembrance wherein she is buried.
IT IS MY WISH that my body should be cremated and that my ashes should be scattered in the said Garden of Remembrance at Seskinore.”
Return to Seskinore
Local recollections record that his ashes were returned from Switzerland during the war, though the circumstances of the time delayed their final interment.
They were placed temporarily within the Chapel of Ease at Seskinore until the end of the war, after which they were laid to rest beside Leila in the garden she had created as a child.
A simple memorial stone was placed alongside hers, marking their final reunion in the grounds of the estate.
Significance
Tony Joynson–Wreford’s final years form one of the most personal chapters in the history of Seskinore.
His devotion to Leila, his attachment to the estate, and his final wishes ensured that, even after the break-up of the estate, the Garden of Remembrance would remain a place of continuity.
👉 See also:
- Leila McClintock: The Final Generation
- The Garden of Remembrance
- The Break-Up of the Seskinore Estate
